The bill making it illegal to possess or sell shark fins and manta parts in Guam was passed yesterday by unanimous vote.

A hearty thanks to all who wrote to Guam's senators to help influence this bill's passage, with a particular thanks to Tim Rock and Stefanie Brendl for their on-site participation.

Tim Rock summed up the significance of this victory:

"With Palau declaring its waters a shark sanctuary in 2009, Yap having its water a manta ray sanctuary since 2008, Guam and the Nothern Mariana Islands banning fin trade, this creates a huge corridor in the western Pacific stretching 1300+ miles from north to south from Helen Reef in far southern Palau to Farralon de Medina in the northern CNMI and across four countries that now prosecute those involved in the non-sustainable shark fin trade. Hawaii in the east central Pacific, a US state, has the first such law on its books passed last year.

Thus, this is a real regional victory for the western Pacific nations and their marine resources."

The in-depth story on the bill and all necessary contact information to thank Guam's legislators (and to write Guam's governor to insure that the bill is signed into law) can be found on Tim's Guam & Micronesia Dive Travel blog.

Stefanie Brendl was here from Pacific Shark Initiative and did a significant amount of work with the sponsoring senators to bring this to fruittion. Many of the local high school marine biology groups also put a lot of time into it.

The first of the many small steps we all must take to curb demand for this product.